The Residences: A New Assisted Living Facility In Miami

If you or your parents are considering moving to an assisted living facility (ALF), you’ll want to add The Residences in West Kendall to your list of places to check out. It’s owned and operated by United HomeCare, a non-profit home health and community care organization in MIami-Dade County and it's located right next to the West Baptist Kendall Hospital. I went to see it for myself and met with the executive director. Here’s what I learned:

• It has a capacity for 150 residents and is expected to open in the next few weeks.
• They plan to accept some medicaid residents in semi-private accomodations.
• There are 122 studio and one-bedroom units in addition to a 15 room memory care unit.
• The dining room features table service with meals prepared by a gourmet chef (I sampled some of her dishes and I have to say they were excellent).
• Their monthly fees include laundry, transportation, telephone, WiFI, daily housekeeping services and other activities.
• Residents who live independently but need a little assistance at night with things like medications or turning down their beds receive this help without additional charges.

I was impressed with the chief administrator, Maria Torre who told me that her main goal is to operate the facility “like a first class hotel.” And, as the first residents move in, she hopes to be able to assign rooms in a way that places like-minded people near each other (perhaps bridge players in one corridor and garden enthusiasts in another).

It’s a lovely looking facility that’s light and bright with lots of artwork, with gardens and entertaining spaces planned for the building’s exterior.

If you or a family member have been thinking about moving to an ALF,  you should schedule a visit and see if it's a good fit.  You won’t know until you spend some time there, enjoy a meal, talk to other residents or prospective residents and “try it on.” 

I’d love to know your opinion about The Residences if you do visit. Email me at nancy@senioritymatters.com and let me know what you think. For more details about The Residences, here’s a link to their website.